BIO

In 1982, LUIS MIGUEL recorded his first album at the tender age of 12. This would be the beginning of an exceptional artistic career.

In 1985, at fifteen years of age, LUIS MIGUEL won his first Grammy from the Academy of Arts and Sciences for his recording of Me Gustas Tal Como Eres, a duet with Sheena Easton. That year was filled with awards. He won the “Antorcha de Plata” (Silver Torch) at the Viña del Mar Festival in Chile and second place in the Festival de la Canción de San Remo (Italy) with Noi Ragazzi Di Oggi.

In 1986, LUIS MIGUEL launched his fifth LP, Soy como quiero ser and began his collaboration with the producer/composer, Juan Carlos Calderón. He received five platinum records and eight gold on the international scene.

In 1988, he recorded his sixth album, Un hombre busca una mujer. The first single on it, La Incondicional, set a record in Latin radio, remaining for seven months in first place on all the pop lists. From this disk, seven singles held the #1 spot on the Billboard “Hot Latin Tracks” list for more than a year.

In 1990, he sold more than 600,000 copies of Luis Miguel 20 años in a single week. Six singles from the album were simultaneously in the top 100 in Mexico. He went on tour through Latin America and the United States with unprecedented success. He won two “Antorchas de Plata” at the Viña del Mar Festival and with that, he was established as the youngest and most important artist in Latin America.

That same year he received the “Excelencia Europea” award in Spain and his first “World Music Award” in Monaco, being the first Latin artist to be recognized as the “Best Selling Artist.”

In 1991, he co-produced his eighth album, Romance (first in a series of boleros), attaining sales of more than seven million copies internationally, and he accumulated more than seventy platinum records. He was the first Latin artist to receive a gold record in the U.S. for an album in Spanish and gold records in Brazil and Taiwan. Romance also took the prize as the “Best International Album” and the “Best International Artist of the Year” at the “Ronda” awards in Venezuela, the “Best Artist From a non-English-Speaking Country” at the Premios Internacionales de Música (International Music Awards) in Korea, and the Trofeo ACE (ACE Trophy) in Argentina.

The following year, he was the only Latin American artist invited to participate in recording Barcelona Gold for the occasion of the Olympic Games.

He won the ”Best International Music Video” at the MTV Awards for his song, América, a tribute to the Olympics, which would form part of a special edition recording of América & En Vivo.

For his album, Romance, LUIS MIGUEL won the Billboard awards in 1992 as “Best Latin Artist,” “Best Album,” and “Best Artist of the Song in Spanish”. He received the “Laurel de Oro” award in Chile for “Best Album of the Year.” He was invited to participate in the closing ceremonies of Expo ’92 in Seville. He performed a concert to raise funds for the Museo de los Niños (Children’s Museum) in Mexico.

In 1993, he produced his ninth album, Aries, which earned him his second Grammy from the Academy of Arts and Sciences as “Best Latin Pop Album.” He won two “Lo Nuestro” awards in the categories, “Pop Artist of the Year” and “Best Pop Album,” the Billboard awards for “Best Male Artist of the Year” and “Best Album of the Year,” and he received more than 40 platinum disks and six gold throughout the world.

That same year, he began an even more extensive tour through Central America, South America, and the U.S. and again broke all box-office records. He was the first Latin singer to completely fill Madison Square Garden in New York and would be the first Latin artist with four consecutive sold-out shows at the Universal Amphitheater in Los Angeles, which he would later achieve again with three dates at Knight Center in Miami.

In 1994, Segundo Romance hit the market and reached number 29 in Billboards’s “Top 200”-- the highest entry point to date for an album in Spanish. He received three “Lo Nuestro” awards (at that time Billboard’s): “Best Album,” “Best Male Interpreter,” and “Best Video” with the song, La Media Vuelta. With this piece, he earned 50 platinum disks.

He was recognized by the RIAA (Recording Industry Artists of America) for selling more than two million copies of Romance and Segundo Romance in the U.S., being the first foreign artist singing in his own language to achieve this historical feat.

That year, he beat his own record by performing 16 consecutive concerts at the Auditorio Nacional de la Ciudad de México. According to the magazines, PERFORMANCE and AMUSEMENT BUSINESS, LUIS MIGUEL holds third place in the world among singers who have sold the most tickets successively in the same place.

He recorded Come Fly With Me as a duet with Frank Sinatra for the album, Sinatra: Duets II, and was one of those chosen to film the television special, SINATRA: DUETS. The following year, he was the only Latin artist invited to sing in “SINATRA: 80 YEARS MY WAY” alongside Ray Charles, Bruce Springsteen, Natalie Cole, and Bob Dylan, among others.

In 1995, he was awarded his third Grammy for his album, Segundo Romance in the category of “Best Latin Pop Performance” and again, in Monaco, the “World Music Award” for “Best Latin Singer of the Year.”

That year’s tour included more than one hundred concerts in the United States and South America, where he drew more than 300,000 spectators, selling out all of his performances.

He released his new album, El Concierto, recorded during the 16 consecutive night performances at the Auditorio Nacional de la Ciudad de México in August of 1994. In double-CD, Cassette, Laser Disc, and HomeVideo formats, it broke sales records. Later the two-hour television special was broadcast simultaneously in the United States, Puerto Rico, and throughout Latin America. El Concierto is outstanding for its great success and in addition, it includes his new interpretations with a Mariachi band.

After reaching two million copies world-wide, he was again given the “Lo Nuestro” award for Latin music as “Best Male Artist of the Year.”

A year later, in 1996, Walt Disney Studios invited LUIS MIGUEL to record “Sueña,” the main theme of the movie, “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” which would become part of his new album, Nada es Igual. His great success, No Se Tú, had already become the main theme of the film, “Speechless.”

During that year, he released Nada es Igual, which, in record time, sold 1.3 million copies and received thirty platinum disks. The first single of this album, Dáme, within only one week, was in first place at all Spanish-language stations in the United States, in addition to entering the top places on all radio lists in Mexico, Central America, South America, and Spain.

In September of 1996, LUIS MIGUEL was honored by the organizing committee of “The Hollywood Walk of Fame” with a star on the famous Hollywood Boulevard. Once again, public attendance at the event broke all records.

That year, LUIS MIGUEL became the highest-paid Latin singer in the history of Las Vegas. He received a special invitation to sing at the thirtieth anniversary of Caesar’s Palace.

In mid-February, LUIS MIGUEL began his tour, “Tour America 1996” through South America—Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Peru, Ecuador, and especially his first performance in Brazil, with a rounding success. In 1997, LUIS MIGUEL released his new album, Romances, the third in the bolero genre, self-produced with the collaboration of the master, Armando Manzanero, and Bebu Silvetti.

Romances debuted at #14 on the “Billboard Top 200,” the highest position ever attained by an album in Spanish. Por Debajo de la Mesa and the singles that followed, El Reloj, Contigo, Bésame Mucho, and De Quererte Así, reached #1 on the radio lists throughout all of Latin America.

He was honored in Spain where he received the “Premio Amigo” and “Premio Ondas” for “Best Latin Singer of the Year.”

That same year, he began the tour, Romances, the most extensive of his career, where he again broke his own records with more than 17 consecutive performances at the Auditorio Nacional de la Ciudad de México, and 5 appearances at Radio City Music Hall in New York, with complete sell-outs.

The magazine, POLLSTAR, recognized him as the first Latin artist to enter the list of the “Top 20 All-time Grossing” artists (the twenty artists who have sold more tickets at the same locale in the history of music).

Romances, to date, has reached four and a half million copies, the first album to sell the most in the least time, earning fifty platinum disks—11 platinums in Argentina, 9 platinums in the United States and Puerto Rico, 8 platinums in Chile, 6 in Venezuela, 5 in Spain, 4 platinums in Mexico and Central America, 2 platinums in Colombia, Bolivia, and Paraguay, a platinum in Peru and Ecuador, and gold in Brazil.

In 1998, LUIS MIGUEL won his fourth “Grammy” for “Best Latin Pop Performance.”

BILLBOARD magazine awarded him the “Billboard Latin 50 Artist of the Year” prize and the prize for “Best Male Pop Album of the Year.” In addition, he was once again honored with his fourth “World Music Award” as “Best Selling Latin Artist,” given to the Latin artist who has sold the most records during the year.

In May of 1998, he began his tour of Spain with concerts in Barcelona, Valencia, Murcia, Malaga, and Madrid, with rounding success. Tickets for the concerts were gone in only two hours in cities like Madrid.

LUIS MIGUEL conquered Spain with unprecedented sales of over a million copies between the album, Romances and the Special Edition of the trilogy, Todos los Romances in only a year.

Romances became #1 on the Spanish billboards, a historical accomplishment, since the CD trilogy under the name Todos los Romances was #3 at the same time.

In 1999, he produced his new album, Amarte es un placer. Once again, LUIS MIGUEL was the producer. In this latest work, he brought together the composers, Armando Manzanero and Juan Carlos Calderón. LUIS MIGUEL participated as author, composer, and arranger of several of the songs.

In July, he released “Sol, Arena y Mar,” the first single of his new album, Amarte Es Un Placer. In only one week, it reached first place in Argentina, Chile, and Mexico.

On August 2, the single, “Sol, Arena y Mar” was released in all Latin American countries, the U.S., and Spain, including 4 versions, among which was a remix done by Danny Saber. Once more, LUIS MIGUEL was a pioneer in music in Spanish.

On September 13, LUIS MIGUEL released Amarte es un Placer, and held a world-wide premier of the video, “O Tu O Ninguna” at a grand event in the Historico Casino of Madrid, attended by the press from the United States, Europe, Asia, and Latin America.

LUIS MIGUEL began his 1999-2000 world tour in Spain and continued with performances in Brazil, Argentina, Chile, and Venezuela.

The final phase of his tour began in the United States with 5 shows at the “Universal Amphitheater” and 4 at “Radio City Music Hall” in New York.

He set a new record in Mexico with 21 consecutive performances at the prestigious Auditorio Nacional de la Ciudad de México. More than 225,000 spectators enjoyed the magic and splendor of his concerts in Mexico City and Monterrey, and he was honored with 4 platinum and gold disks for the album, Amarte es un Placer.

Once again in May, he was honored by BILLBOARD magazine for “Best Male Pop Album of the Year.” In May, he finished the tour with more than 100 performances. The “LUIS MIGUEL 1999-2000” tour was catalogued, according to the William Morris agency, as the tour with the highest income in the history of Spanish-speaking artists.

In September, the album, Amarte es un Placer, earned 3 prizes as “Album of the Year,” “Best Pop Album,” and “Best Male Pop Vocal Interpretation” for the song, Tu Mirada, at the first awarding of the Latin Grammys.

On October 3, 2000, he released Vivo, which was recorded during the tour concerts in Monterrey, Mexico. On this album, he included the great successes throughout his career and the unpublished songs, Y and La Bikini, with Mariachi accompaniment.

On October 30, he presented the DVD and VHS of Vivo, making history by releasing the first video-concert in Spanish on PAL/NTSC and DVD in Europe, the United States, and South America.

In April of 2001, BILLBOARD magazine awarded him “Best Pop Album of the Year” for Vivo.

In July, Vivo was nominated as “Best Male Pop Album” at the second Latin Grammys awards, and he simultaneously prepared to release his new production in November.

In September, LUIS MIGUEL stopped recording his new album in order to participate in the second Latin Grammys awards scheduled for the 11th of that month, but given the events of that time, the ceremony was canceled. In solidarity with that tragedy, Michael Jackson invited LUIS MIGUEL to participate in his fund-raising project by recording the song, “Todo Para Ti,” blending his voice with other artists such as Celine Dion, Jennifer Lopez, and Gloria Estefan, among others.

On November 29 of 2001, LUIS MIGUEL continued with his bolero series and released Mis Romances world-wide, on which he included unpublished songs of the composers, Manuel Alejandro and Armando Manzanero, in addition to the collaboration of THE ROYAL PHILHARMONIC ORQUESTRA of LONDON. The event took place in the Versace mansion in Miami Beach, Florida.

Less than one month after its release, Mis Romances was a complete success on the quadruple platinum level in Argentina and Mexico, gold in Brazil, Chile, and Colombia, as well as platinum in the United States and Venezuela, while in Spain, it was a double platinum.

LUIS MIGUEL is the artist who has spread the bolero the most around the world, with sales passing 20 million units (only of his productions devoted to the bolero), in countries as diverse as Japan, Korea, Singapore, Indonesia, Australia, Germany, Holland, Finland, Belgium, and The Czech Republic, among many others.

In November, he released his first single of this production, Amor, Amor, Amor.

In January of 2002, at only 32 years of age, LUIS MIGUEL completed 20 years of his artistic career.
That same year, at the first awards of the Premios Luna at the Auditorio Nacional de la Ciudad de México, LUIS MIGUEL was given the award for “Best Artistic Career.” Months later, LUIS MIGUEL again captivated the public at the fifteenth anniversary of the Premio Lo Nuestro, receiving the “Reward for Excellence” from the hands of María Elena Salinas and the mayor of Miami.

At the end of January, he began his tour, Mis Romances, and traveled through several countries such as the United States, Spain, Chile, Uruguay, Argentina, Peru, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Mexico, with great success.
In Mexico, he once again made history, appearing for the first time at the Estadio Azteca, and because of great expectations, this concert was recorded and broadcast on Mexican television.

During his tour of Spain, Warner Music Spain honored him with a commemorative disk for having sold more than 4 million copies of his recordings in Spain.

On December 14, 2002, LUIS MIGUEL concluded his tour, Mis Romances, in the Altos de Chavon in the Dominican Republic. As a result of the great success of this tour, in 2003 LUIS MIGUEL won the Billboard prize, “Tour of the Year,” for the tour, Mis Romances 2002. This same year, Billboard magazine awarded him “Best Pop Album of the Year” for Mis Romances and also “Album of the Year” at the Ritmo Latino awards.

In October of 2002, Warner Music Latin America presented Mis Boleros Favoritos world-wide, an anthology album of boleros, including the unpublished song, Hasta Que Vuelvas, produced by the master, Bebu Silvetti, accompanied by a DVD with his best selection of videos.

On September 29, 2003, he releases “33,” a work in which he returns to his pop side and which is based on eleven unpublished songs. The album was recorded at studios in Los Angeles, and LUIS MIGUEL was in charge of production. His first single, “Te Necesito,” following its radio appearance, landed in the top places on the pop lists throughout Latin America, Spain, and the United States. After the release of “33” to the market, LUIS MIGUEL begins his ‘03/’04 world tour to promote it.

LUIS MIGUEL, throughout his successful career, has sold more than 50 million albums.